The Day and Night Dress Challenge 2018: Sew Much Talent

Stepping up to the plate

First, let me say that I was over ecstatic that I was even invited to be a blogger for this challenge. I love Elizabeth a.k.a. The Fabric Manipulator. . . .I was delighted to do so! Besides, she is one of my administrators, It’s kinda hard to say no.

Second, this has truly been a challenge. Unfortunately, true to my nature I was extremely indecisive as to what dresses I wanted to create. I went through several patterns and tossed them all. I just couldn’t think. I wasn’t sure. This went on until proverbially and literally the 11th hour. But I did it.

My style

As you’ll see, I created my day and night looks with a little twist that I think is prophetic of me and my life these days. I have a very eclectic passion for fashion… sometimes a little eccentric. But, hey, it’s what I like. I learning to just do what I see and make no apologies about it. However, you rarely get to see that side of me because I don’t get dressed up often.

Patterns

Anyway, let’s talk about these looks. I used a very basic sheath dress pattern, McCalls 7085 for my coffee dress.

( I did change the style pattern at the last minute)

To many of you this may be a surprise, but I DID NOT HACK THIS PATTERN.I stitched it straight from the envelope. I only had to make minor fit adjustments, adding to the sides, and length to the hem. I, also, took up the shoulders a tad bit.

I chose to use this beautiful piece of fabric that I got from one of my sew sisters, Eubie Bryant. Eubieruns her business, Custom Sewing and Alterations, here locally.She does a lot of home decor for her clients. This piece I got from her is actually a home decor piece.

I accidentally discovered that it paired perfectly with a 3-D organza fabric that I received from one of my Sew Much Talent sisters last February.

My Coffee Dress

For me, my coffee runs are usually from in-home studio to my kitchen, where i make my own. If I must go to Starbucks, then it’s either on the way to my part-time job, or on the way home in the mornings from taking the kids to the local college. So, this is my idea of what meeting a client for coffee would look like.

My cocktail look

Okay, so let me tell you about my cocktail dress. I imagine, as my life is normally, that I am running from coffee with a client to a cocktail party. I don’t have time to change into something completely different, so I have to transform my look to fit the occasion. We do it in business all the time. So, why not make it work in this case. SO, I technically do not have two dresses, I have two looks. All I could hear is my husband saying, as he always does, “work smarter, not harder”. So, then, it all started coming together.

This is where the organza 3-D fabric came into play. I imagined doing so much with it, but time was of the essence. SO, to make a quick change and transform the look, I self-drafted an overskirt and a matching exaggerated flower. With the change of my shoes and earrings , I was able to achieve what I wanted. I did change my hairstyle up. I even created hairpin accessories for my cocktail look.

Although I had challenges trying to decide on the looks, complete this blog post, and get pictures done, I am so happy to say that I made it! The only inspirations were my imaginations mentioned above, my husbands voice whispering in my ear. He knows I over think everything.

I will say that I did Google search for both coffee dress and cocktail dresses.

All I got from the coffee dress search were a boat load of chocolate colored dresses. In my search for the cocktail dress, I found this dress code along with this picture that kinda has the same idea as mine. Seeing this image of a cocktail dress gave me the reassurance that my dress will be just fine.

To you Elizabeth, thank you ever so much for asking me to participate in this challenge. It has truly been a challenge. I am enjoying seeing what the other bloggers and vloggershave created.

Welcome to Elizabeth Made This! I’m so happy that you made it here! Whether you are looking for sewing inspiration, tips and techniques to get you sewing better, faster, and creatively, you will find it right here! I’m a wife and Mom of 4 and sewing is my favorite kind of jigsaw puzzle. Join me in exploring the joy of creating through sewing your own handmade wardrobe. Love, Elizabeth Click here to read more about me.

Connect

Whether Elizabeth is pattern hacking, embellishing, refashioning or altering fabric, she is always looking beyond the pattern envelope. If you're looking for someone to create projects, you've landed in the right spot! Read More…

See something that you like? Want to share it? You may use one or two photos, but do not copy Elizabeth Made This content and post it on your own site. Please link back to the original posts. Thank you.